A Wolf and a Walker
by Liliana-Mae
Summary: Samuel has loved two girls in his life with his whole heart, one he loved most because she was always meant to be his. But she ran just after marrying him and he never saw her again. She comes back with a surprise and asks for forgiveness. Plus add in the fact Samuel has feelings for her twin sister, Mercy Thompson. What is this lone wolf going to do?
1. Chapter 1

I usually like driving, but to have to drive from Montana to the Tri-Cities nonstop is not something I really like. I pull into the parking lot of the local hospital in the Tri-Cities to find my favorite person. As I walk in, the smell of the hospital washes over me. I do not mind the smell too much since i have been spending most of my time here. After looking at the hospital map, I find the reception desk and walk over with a small smile.

"May I help you?" the nurses ask with a painted on smile. She must have been working the long shift to cover for someone. I do not miss those days of working extra shifts for people who either do not show or beg you to take them.

"Could you page Dr. Cornick for me? I am an old friend of his," I say with my smile still on my face. The nurse nods and picks up the phone to page him. Five minutes later, the man I have not seen in years walks around the corner with his black hair combed back and his wise gray eyes searching my own hazel eyes.

"How did you find me after all these years?" Samuel asks once he is before me. We share a small embrace for a few minutes and I motion for him to follow me outside. He puts his hand on the small of my back like always while we walk out to the car.

"Bran told me where to find you," I say once we are out the door.

"I do not have long because my shift ends in about thirty minutes. Can we talk after? How long are you here for?" Samuel says. We stand at the car and I open the back door to let him see the sleeping child in the back. Samuel looks in, stiffens and then turns to me quickly.

"What? This is how you," Samuel begins but stops for a moment. "The last time I saw you you were walking out of my life after we just got married, I waited years for divorce papers. That was nearly four years ago. What is the meaning of this?"

"This boy right here is your son and he has been asking about you constantly. He needs you now more than ever and Bran agrees with me on this," I say.

"My father knew about this and never said a word? Why did you not tell me you were pregnant?" Samuel growls, his eyes turning white. "Look, we can talk about this when I get off work. Tell me where you are staying and I will meet you there."

"A small hotel not too far from here. I will be there when you are done with work," I say, giving him a card from the hotel. I close the door softly to get around the car, but Samuel grabs my hand and looks at me with sad eyes.

"You are still beautiful after all this time, Marie," Samuel says softly. Tears fill my eyes as I look at the man I have loved dearly for so many years. I pull my hand from his to get into the car and drive to see the Columbia Basin pack alpha. Bran was right, Samuel would have many questions and would not take my disappearance well when I was pregnant with his only living child. I arrive at the hotel to check in and get my bags up to the suite I booked. My darling son is a champ in helping me with his stuff even in his half awake state. Once he makes it to the room, he climbs into the bed and falls back to sleep. I smile as I tuck him in, kiss his dark hair, and sing his little lullaby. An hour later, there is a soft knock on the door and I slip my bath robe on to open the door. Samuel is out of his work clothes and he has takeout in his hands.

"Hi," Samuel says with a little smile. I open the door wider to let him in and I follow him to the eating table after closing the door to the bedroom.

"He is sleeping after so much going on," I say with a small cough.

"Well, I want to talk about all that happened after you left just after we got married. Where have you been and why did you wait to find me?" Samuel asks.

"Bran told me the truth about what happened between you and Mercy, also why you really wanted to run away with her. It made me panic because that was my sister that you wanted for having children with and she and I are walkers. Yet, you found me and told me you loved me all those years. After you told Bran about our marriage, he said the truth and then I got to thinking. I packed everything I could take with me and went off to start my life over. But every time I wanted to go get a divorce lawyer, I could not do that to you and then I found out I was pregnant with your baby. Bran was the only one that knew about our son and told me it may be best to stay away for a bit. He visited when our son was a baby and he was a proud grandfather. It was not until recently that he agreed it would be best if you got to see your son," I say. Samuel makes us two plates, saving some for when our son wakes up.

"I see," Samuel says softly. "What is his name?"

"Alexander Samuel Cornick," I say. Samuel looks at me with proud eyes to hear his son was named after him. "I thought I would lose him like we did with our first baby, but he is a fighter just like you and he has been pushing through like a normal healthy baby boy."

"He is beautiful like you," Samuel says with a smile. "Does Mercy know you are here?"

"Not yet, I am going to call her later if she is not busy with her mechanic shop. Bran tells me you are living with her," I say with a hint of jealousy in my voice. Samuel pretends not to notice my jealousy. "Does she know you are married and still have feelings for her?"

"No, but she knows I care about her very much," Samuel says. The door to the bedroom opens that are later accompanied by little feet. We both turn to see Alexander rubbing his beautiful gray eyes as he shuffles over to me. I smile when I pick him up to sit him in my lap and kiss his red cheeks.

"Hi, baby," I say sweetly.

"Mama," Alexander yawns. He moves some of his hair out of his face and looks over at Samuel. "Who you?"

"Hello, Alexander," Samuel says. "I am Samuel and I am your daddy."

"Mama say I have your name," Alexander says. Samuel chuckles and looks up at me.

"Yes you do have my name and you are beautiful like your mama," Samuel says. His voice and words send a shiver down my back and I can see he does not hate me for leaving him.

"Baby, why don't you go watch some cartoons in the bedroom while I talk a little more to," I stop when I am not sure what to call Samuel right now.

"He is my daddy so he is called daddy, mama," Alexander says for me. I nod before kissing my angel softly on his forehead and let him shuffle back to the bedroom, closing the door behind him. Samuel moves closer to me to hold my hand in his and smiles.

"You did great these past few years raising him, Marie," Samuel says. I caress his face with my free hand and he leans his head against it.

"I missed you so much, Sam," I whisper. Samuel inches closer to kiss my lips softly and he smiles at the feeling of our lips together once more.

"I missed you too, baby," Samuel says sweetly.


	2. Chapter 2

Alexander holds my hand as we walk up to Mercy's garage to pay her a visit. A teenage boy is sitting at the desk with a fan blowing on him while he goes through some papers. I smile at him when he looks up and then stares in awe at me like I am a model or something. Mercy comes into the office while wiping her hands with a rag and she smiles widely the moment her eyes catch mine. She runs over to give me a hug, forgetting she is a mess, and then she reaches down to scoop Alexander up into her arms. Alexander hugs his aunt with a bigger smile after not seeing her for a long time.

"Hello, my little ninja," Mercy says.

"Hi, Aunt Mercy, you are icky," Alexander giggles.

"What are you two doing here?" Mercy asks me.

"Visiting in hopes of just staying here permanently," I say with a smile. Mercy takes my hand in her hand, she knows something is bothering me and she is trying to make me feel better. "Alexander wanted to treat his favorite aunt to lunch before his nap."

"Oh, that sounds really nice and I would like that very much," Mercy says while nuzzling Alexander's cheek. "You came just in time for us t close up for the day. I am only working a half day today."

"Good, I will get Alexander back in the car and then we can decide where to go for lunch," I say. Alexander wiggles out of Mercy's grasp and heads to the car. Mercy tells the boy at the desk what they need to do to close up, while I walk towards Alexander. My cell phone rings with Samuel calling from work, but I ignore it in hopes that Mercy not hear our conversation. No one knows about me and Samuel besides Bran or my relationship with Mercy. Mercy comes out once the garage is closed up and the boy is picked up by someone not long after. I smile when I see Mercy walk over, still messy from her time in the garage.

"Where do you want to go for lunch, sister?" Mercy asks.

"Maybe we should go to your house to let you clean up a bit," I giggle. Mercy pushes my shoulder before heading to her car and leading the way to where she lives. It is a small trailer, but big enough for her and Samuel, of whom I can smell once I get out of the car. Alexander holds my hand as we walk to the front door, but he stops when he sees someone walk from around the house. The person is a fit man with gentle eyes, but he has a stern look on his face. His eyes drift over to Mercy as she opens the door and then stops when he sees me.

"Am I seeing double right now?" the man asks.

"Adam, this is my twin sister, Marie, and her son, Alexander," Mercy says. Alexander smiles widely and waves his little hand proudly.

"A pleasure to meet you, I have never met any of Mercy's family, nor did I know she had a twin sister," Adam says.

"You must be Adam Hauptman, alpha to the Columbia Basin pack," I say quickly. Adam raises a brow wondering how it is I knew that and I let my head drop to avoid his gaze.

"She knows Bran like I do and keeps up with the werewolves where she lives. Come on inside," Mercy says. Alexander runs after her while I walk inside with Adam behind me. Mercy shows Alexander around the small place while Adam remains close to me.

"You smell like Samuel," Adam says softly, but does not look at me.

"I do not know anyone named Samuel, I only just arrived a few days ago with my son to see Mercy," I say with my chest puffed out and my head held high. My phone rings again with a strange number popping up. I step outside to answer it, only to realise it is Samuel.

"Why didn't you answer my call?" Samuel asks with worry.

"I am with Mercy and I would very much like to not have her find out about us right now," I hiss.

"Wait, you are at the house?" Samuel asks. A new car pulls up and I blanch when I see Samuel in the driver's seat of that car. He hops out to walk over to me, but I remain frozen.

"No, you need to leave right now," I say quickly.

"This is my home and you are the guest," Samuel taunts with a crooked smile. I glare at him while pushing on his chest, but he pulls me close to him and my face heats up.

"Someone is going to catch us," I gasp. Sure enough, the door opens for Adam and Mercy to look out and catch us like two teenagers. I push myself away from Samuel to give us some distance just moments before Alexander runs out calling for his father. Samuel scoops my little boy up with a big smile and kisses his cheeks.

"What is going on?" Mercy asks.

"Well, since Samuel is here, Mercy and I can go to lunch on our own," I say, grabbing her hand and pulling her to my car. She gets in reluctantly and sits with her mouth open in confusion as I drive away. Alexander does not look upset because he gets to spend time with his father instead. After driving for ten minutes, I pull over to the first park I see to sit for a minute.

"Marie, what was that just now?" Mercy asks.

"You remember how I got married just out of medical school and then left the man only to find out I am pregnant with his child?" I ask quickly. Mercy only nods to let me continue and explain. "Samuel is the man I married and ran from. When we told Bran about us, he told me the story of you and Samuel when you were sixteen. I thought that is why Samuel wanted to be with me and why we got married when we did. We lost our first baby due to a heart defect and I left him not long after that. I tried to get myself to get a divorce lawyer, but every time I did I stopped myself from hurting Samuel anymore then I did when we lost our baby. I found out I was pregnant again with Alexander just after leaving him and I told Bran the news. Bran helped me get on my feet and care for Alexander as best as he could. I sent photos of Alexander to Bran and kept him updated, while hiding who his father was from you and mom."

"Marie, you should have told me," Mercy says after a minute of silence. I look down at my hands on my lap hoping she will yell at me, instead she pulls me into a hug. "I am glad you came to see me and Samuel to let him see his son. You did the right thing in bringing Samuel into Alexander's life."

"I am sorry," I whisper.

"No need to apologise to me," Mercy says with a small laugh. She lets me go with a big smile and caresses my face. "You just need to talk to Samuel about what is going to happen next and then tell mom the truth about the secrets you hid from her all these years."

"She is going to be hard to calm down at the end of that conversation," I giggle. Mercy laughs with me and the two of us end up going back to her house instead of going out to lunch like we planned.


	3. Chapter 3

I am sitting in the waiting room of the hospital for my appointment with the doctor. Alexander is coloring in his coloring book in the chair next to me after a ten minute discussion about going to see Samuel after my appointment is over. His unruly curls are held back in a ponytail to show off his chubby cheeks and beautiful grey eyes. He looks up at me every now and then to smile and to show me the progress he has made with his picture. My name is called and I gather my things before picking Alexander up to head into the office. One of the nurses takes Alexander with her to another room by the doctor's request and I feel my heart begin to beat wildly in my chest in fear of what is going to be said. I sit in the extra chair in the doctor's office, wringing my jacket while trying to keep my breathes even, while the doctor goes over my records from my last doctor in Boston.

"So, we did some new test as requested by your last doctor to give us an idea in what we will be dealing with. Now, the tests that you did before leaving Boston and then coming here were different," the doctor says.

"Good different or bad different?" I ask quietly.

"Good," the doctor says with a smile. "The treatment you were doing with your last doctor was working really well. I was surprised when I saw you have all of your hair while doing the chemo and I think we should continue the treatment for the time being."

"My doctor and nurses say I was a lucky person to not lose all my hair. Thank you for the good news," I say with relief and then make a few more appointments to do my chemo. I emerge into the hallway to see Alexander coloring with the nurse and his bright smile lifts my spirits. After giving the nurse a hug and telling her thank you, we go to the ER to look for Samuel. He is standing at the desk in his scrubs and white coat on, looking just like he did when I first met him years ago. Alexander runs over to his father and hugs his leg with a quiet giggle. Samuel looks down with a surprised look and pats Alexander on the head before looking up at me.

"What are you two doing here?" Samuel asks when I am right beside him. We share a quick kiss out of habit, making my face become red, and I smile widely.

"Alexander wanted to see you at work before my interview and going to spend some time with Mercy. She is coming to get him in about twenty minutes," I say.

"I can watch him, we are a little slow today," Samuel says. I never understood his reasoning behind wanting to work in the ER as a surgeon.

"Can I stay with daddy instead, mama?" Alexander asks with a little pout. I look up at Samuel to see he too is pouting at me and I cannot help but laugh at my two boys.

"Fine, but daddy has to call Aunt Mercy to tell her," I giggle. Samuel pulls out his phone to call Mercy while I kneel down to fix Alexander's jacket. He moves a piece of hair out of my face with a small smile and I tap his nose to make him giggle. "Be good for daddy and show him all the pretty pictures you colored for me and him. I love you, mon ami, with all my heart and soul."

"Mama, you will only be gone for an hour," Alexander giggles. I kiss his forehead before standing up and looking at Samuel.

"Take care of, Samuel," I say. Samuel kisses my nose softly with a big smile and leaves with Alexander holding his hand. I wait for them to round the corner before heading off to my interview for a job position here as a physical therapist and a part time orthopedic surgeon. It is literally an hour later that I walk out with a job and head to find my boys. The chief of surgery and head of physical therapy found it odd for me to leave Boston and they were concerned about my treating oncologist being at this very hospital. After careful explanation, I had them believing in me being able to be a mother, doctor, and patient easily. Samuel is sitting in the cafeteria with Alexander, eating a snack, and laughing about something.

"Mama," Alexander gasps when he sees me walking over. I smile widely as I get closer and kiss the top of his head. "Daddy was showing me how to write my name."

"Oh, that is cool," I giggle. Samuel looks at me with bright eyes and a big smile on his face.

"How did it go?" Samuel asks quietly.

"I start at the end of the month," I say. Samuel laughs while taking my hand and kissing the top of it.

"Congratulations, beautiful, I am so proud of you," Samuel says. I smile widely, feeling inflated with joy that I have a job and Samuel is happy for me.

* * *

Adam comes over just after I put Alexander down for bed and I hear Samuel open the door for him to come inside. Mercy has moved a few things in her office to bring in a small bed for Alexander to sleep in. He loves being in this room because of the books and I am glad he is a trooper for being good while we wait for our own place to call home. I am closing the door to his room when Mercy comes out of her room to greet Adam and she smiles at me for a moment. Quietly, I walk to the living room to see Adam and Samuel conversing about something that seems to be a secret.

"What are you two plotting over there?" Mercy asks. I go into the kitchen to make a cup of tea before bed.

"Marie," someone says softly. I turn to see Adam standing in the doorway with a small smile.

"Yes?" I ask quietly.

"I was wondering if you would mind going out to lunch with me one day so we can get to know each other," Adam says. I realise then that he is trying to get a rise out of Samuel, knowing that the two of us are not back together. I hear Samuel growl in the living room when the sounds of his feet coming towards the kitchen.

"Why are you asking my wife out on a date?" Samuel growls.

"She may still be married to you, but you two are together anymore. I can sense the tension between the two of you," Adam says with a wide smile. Samuel growls again with his chest out and I rush over to push the two men away. Mercy is laughing in the living room and it makes Samuel explode.

"What are you laughing at?! Are you laughing at my wife being asked out too?!" Samuel snaps. I grab his shirt collar, pull him to my face and give him a few smacks. Adam and Mercy gasp at my choice of action and wait for Samuel to shift on me in a few seconds, but instead Samuel calms down with his eyes on mine.

"One, do not snap at my sister like you just did. Two, I never agreed to the date so you need to remain calm at times like that. Three, our son is asleep and I want him to remain asleep all night so you can get enough rest for work tomorrow. Lastly, I am not leaving you for anyone for reasons you know very well. Now, apologise and step outside so we can go for a walk to calm you down a little more," I say sternly with my motherly voice. Once I let Samuel go, he apologises to Adam and Mercy before heading outside to wait for me.

"Wow, no one has ever survived doing what you just did," Adam says. I get my coat and phone without saying a word to him, but stop at the door.

"Keep an eye on Alexander, there is leftovers in the fridge, and I am only to do what I did because he and his wolf accept me for who I am. He has never attacked me for that," I say and then walk out to Samuel waiting by my car.


	4. Chapter 4

Samuel remains quiet as we take our walk, but he keeps close to me. I sigh when I see his eyes drift to me every now and then, knowing he wants to say something, but he is unable to say it. After walking for about twenty minutes into the woods, I sit on a fallen tree with my eyes fixed on Samuel. Apparently, I am the only one that is able to control Samuel like I did or any wolf in the matter. I raise a brow when Samuel stands in front of me with sad eyes.

"Are you going to leave me again?" Samuel asks softly.

"Why would I do that? I would never take Alexander away from you a second time," I say. Samuel nods and turns to walk away a few feet to give me space.

"Why did you think I only wanted you to have children? What did I do to make you believe what Da told you?" Samuel asks.

"It was not something you did, it was what happened after we lost our first baby and then what Bran said. I thought that you only wanted children with me and then when we had our first baby you were happy. But, the moment our baby died, you did not touch me and only had emotionless sex when I got angry at you. I did not want to live like that and it made me believe you only wanted me just like you wanted Mercy. I also felt guilty for our baby dying," I say. Samuel looks at me with surprised eyes and shifts his foot a little walk over to me, but stops himself.

"How could it have been your fault? You know I feared we would lose our baby during the first trimester because most babies with fathers like me do not live that long. You took our full term and it was up to our baby to fight to live. You were a great mother to both of our children," Samuel says. "Our little Saralynn was as beautiful as you and she was a fighter just like you."

"You said her name," I say softly with tears falling down my face. I suddenly feel like I am sitting in the hospital with our Saralynn fighting in her crib just to breathe and stay alive. Samuel was behind me with his hands on my shoulders trying to keep himself strong through this and we watch our daughter take her last breathe. Samuel brings me back to the present with his hands on my knees, crouched in front of me with a small smile.

"Yes, I said her name because I think about her everyday and what she would looked like or be saying. I imagine her face looking as beautiful as you and her humming like you do when you are working. She was our angel and she knew she was loved very much," Samuel says. I fling myself in his arms to hug tightly while I cry again over the daughter we never got to see grow up past her first month. Samuel holds me close while he coos to me with one hand rubbing my back and the other caressing my hair a little.

"I am so sorry," I sob. Samuel pulls me away a little to kiss my forehead and to wipe my tears away. We are just like when we first lost our daughter and even when we had our first fight. Samuel looks down at my lips, wanting to kiss them, and me wanting to have the feeling of his lips on mine again. Slowly we lean close until our lips brush against each other and we let our temptation get the best of us. We are kissing each other wildly while trying to keep our hands from unclothing each other and we continue this for what feels like hours, but only lasts five minutes.

"Come on, we better get home before Mercy and Adam coming look for us," Samuel chuckles. I smile as we stand up and then Samuel overs to carry me on his back like we started dating. I let him carry me with fits of laughter as he messes around with me as we make our way back to Mercy's trailer. Adam and Mercy are waiting outside for us patiently and I hide my face in Samuel's shoulder as we get closer to them.

"I am going to guess this little spat has allowed you two to reconnect with each other," Adam says with a big smile. Samuel puts me down and chases me to our room, ignoring the fact we have people that can hear us. I make it into our room, only to be pinned to the door by Samuel and he kisses me deeply with a soft growl. He spins me around to kiss my neck with my hands held above my head and I gasp when he moves his kisses down my back.

"Still sensitive here and I love that," Samuel purrs. I arch my back when Samuel lets his hands slide down my sides to caress the side of my hips. "Get on our bed right now."

"What about my clothes?" I ask softly. Samuel pulls my blouse open with a growl and goes to undo my jeans, but I push him back to the bed. He smiles as I crawl over him slowly and meet his lips as he sits up and I lean down. His hands go up my back to hold the back of my head when he moves to kiss my neck. I moan while biting my bottom lip when I feel Samuel let his other hand reach around to cup my ass.

"God, I have missed your ass in my hands," Samuel groans. He moves to get me out of his jeans while I struggle to get him out of his clothes faster. Samuel flips over with a smile and I cannot help but giggle at his now playful mood. He spreads my legs open slowly to fit his hips between them before letting his big, hard cock slide into between my wet lips. I lean my head back against the pillows at the wonderful filling feeling of having him inside me after all these years. Samuel buries his face into my neck with a groan at the feeling of being inside me again before he moves his hips slowly. We are moaning into each other's mouths as we kiss and literally shake the bed, letting Mercy and Adam know what we are doing. It goes on for many blissful hours into the night until the sun peeks over the trees the next morning, ending our wonderful lovemaking.


	5. Chapter 5

Alexander shuffles out of his room to the kitchen when he wakes up and I am making breakfast. I pick up my sleepy boy to give him his morning snuggles and finish the eggs. Samuel and Mercy are still asleep so it gives me enough time to finish getting everything done. Alexander yawns softly with his head on my shoulder, watching my movements. Soft steps come into the kitchen and I see Samuel rubbing his sleepy eyes just like Alexander. He walks over to hold me in his arms and rest his head on Alexander.

"I am only able to hold up on of you two, boys," I giggle.

"I had mommy first," Alexander pouts.

"Technically, I had mommy before you, buddy," Samuel grumbles. I kiss my son on his forehead when he whimpers at what Samuel said.

"You two need to learn to share mommy because there is only one of her," I sigh. Samuel goes to go sit on the couch until breakfast is done and Alexander begins to drift back to sleep. I finish making breakfast and put them all on plate for everyone to get what they want. Mercy comes in for some coffee with her hair a mess while I go to check on Samuel. He is laying on the couch with one arm tucked under his head and I lay Alexander on top of him. The two snuggle close together, holding each other's hand and I rush to get my phone to take a picture of the two of them. Mercy is snickering at the boys on the couch while I take a few snapshots of them.

"I cannot believe Samuel is a dad though. He has a handsome son, then again Alexander is my nephew after all," Mercy says quietly. I swat her leg with a smile of my own.

"You go eat so you can get to work," I say. Mercy walks off to get herself ready for work first and I make a cup of tea to stand outside. I made love with my husband after so many years in my sister's house and I am very happy. Alexander is with his father after asking when he would see him. But, I am not sure what is going to happen between me and Samuel. I broke his heart once and I am sure that when I tell him about my secret appointments, he is going to be hurt once more. There is shuffling inside the house and I go back in to see Alexander sitting up looking around for me. He sniffles and whimpers when he does not see me at first, but Samuel sits up to hold him close to calm Alexander down. I walk over to put a blanket over them, but Samuel opens his eyes slowly and smiles.

"Hey," Samuel whispers. I smile and lean down to kiss his forehead softly. My hair falls over my shoulder a little and it tickles Alexander's face.

"Get some sleep, mon ami, I will wake you up when you need to get ready for work," I say sweetly. Samuel drifts back to sleep, holding Alexander close, and I go to sit in my room to read a book. The moment I sit on my bed, my phone lets out a loud shrill to tell me that someone is calling. I answer the call, hoping that the boys did not wake up. "Bran, what are you calling at this time in the morning?"

"Marie, I am just calling to check on you and Alexander. Did you find Samuel?" Bran asks with worry in his voice.

"Yes, we found Samuel and staying with him and Mercy right now. We are doing fine," I say.

"Did you see your new doctor?" Bran asks.

"Yes, the treatment I was doing back in Boston helped and we are going to continue with the old treatment to see how it goes. No, Samuel does not know right now," I say quietly in hopes Samuel does not hear me.

"He is going to find out sooner or later and I think you should tell him before it is too late," Bran scolds a little.

"I will when the time is right, I do not want to break his heart after getting to meet his son and having me back in is life only to be taken from him later. Samuel will be told the truth when it is time," I say.

"Alright, well, call me if you need anything and give my love to Alexander from his grandda," Bran says. I smile while promising to call him and give Alexander his love when Mercy walks into the room after I hang up with Bran.

"What are you hiding from us?" Mercy asks. I stand up quickly with my mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Mercy crosses her arms over her chest with a raised brow.

"I am not hiding anything from you guys. It is nothing to worry about," I say and try to get out of the room. Mercy grabs my arm to stop me and I reflexively throw her against the wall. "It is nothing!"

"Marie," Samuel says. I spin around to see him standing alone in the doorway with a confused look on his face and I run out of the room and the house into the woods to get away from them to stop my head from spinning.

* * *

Adam is standing at the door with a teenage girl at his side around lunch time when I open the door. I raise a brow when I see him and wipe my hands on my towel. Adam smiles at me while waiting for me to let him in.

"Mercy is not here, she is at the garage," I say.

"She really does look like Mercy, dad" the teenage girl says to Adam.

"Marie, this is my daughter, Jessie," Adam says. "She is going to watch Alexander while you and I go on our lunch date."

"I never agreed to that and Alexander is staying with someone I barely know. Besides, he is going to have lunch with Samuel at the hospital," I say while walking back into the house with the door closing behind me. My heard begins to hurt again as I walk into the kitchen to finish the dishes, but Adam knocks on the door again. As I stomp over to open the door, my vision blurrs suddenly and I fall against the door. Alexander runs over calling my name with worry while Adam pushes me off the door while opening it.

"Mama," Alexander whimpers. I blindly reach out to touch his face and he leans head against my hand.

"Marie, what happened?" Adam asks.

"Take me to the hospital right now," I manage to say. Adam picks me up while telling Jessie to stay at the house with Alexander. My poor baby screams out for me as he watches Adam take me from him. Once I am in the car, my heart begins to beat quicker than it should be beating. Adam peels out of the driveway while trying to call the hospital to get ready for us.


	6. Chapter 6

I sit in the dark in the hospital ER with Adam standing near me to keep a lookout for Samuel. Adam knows that Samuel has not been told anything about any of this and he will not know until I decide to tell him. A nurse comes over behind the sheet wall to check on me only to see my sight has not made any progress and neither has my heart rate. Adam and the nurse talk quietly about the tests that need to be done and that is when I catch Samuel's scent.

"Adam?" Samuel calls over. I begin to panic, trying to get off the bed, only to cause my heart monitor go wild and fall off the bed.

"Adam!" I scream. People begin to scramble around to get to me, but I begin to fight anyone who touches me. Someone holds me in their arms to clam me down and I cry from the new pain I caused myself. Samuel's scent fills my nose and I know who it is that is holding me. He coos to me softly in between telling the nurses we need a wheelchair to get me out of the ER.

"You have some explaining to do, Adam. Where is Alexander?" Samuel says once the nurses are gone.

"Jessie is watching him at Mercy's place and he was not a very happy guy to have his mother being taken away when she is feeling well," Adam says with a hint of humor. I take a quick breathe when my head begins to hurt again. Samuel holds me in his arms while trying to put me in the wheelchair, but I begin to have a seizure. Samuel panics while shouting for something that I cannot hear clearly as I seize. Eventually I stop my involuntary movements and drift off to sleep for a little bit to find myself in a private hospital room with Alexander sleeping in Mercy's arms. Mercy is also asleep, leaving me alone with Adam and Samuel.

"Thank god you are awake," Samuel says. He pulls me into a hug the moment he sits on the edge of the bed. "You have some explaining about all that just happened, Marie Cornick."

"Bran is on his way here after Samuel gave him a call about this since Bran is the only one that knows what is wrong with you," Adam says. Someone knocks on the door and my oncologist walks in with another doctor.

"Hello Dr. Cornicks," my doctor says with a smile on his face. "We are here about the tests that were done today. Apparently there is another problem with Marie's heart and we want to wait a little before proceeding on that issue since it is not too bad. But, we have a bigger issue with the problems that were found in her brain. According to the scans, one of her tumors has grown too close to her hypothalamus so we want to go in to remove it surgically with your consent."

"What does she have exactly to have caused something like this?" Samuel asks quickly.

"Brain cancer," I say before the doctor can. "I am the only one that got it between me and Mercy."

"What? How long have you had this?" Samuel asks.

"A few years now," I say. "When can we do the surgery?"

"Today in one hour," the doctor says and then leaves with the other doctor quickly. Samuel rubs his face while taking deep breathes, taking in what he was just told. Adam remains quiet for a moment to see who would talk first.

"Why didn't you tell me you had it when you got here?" Samuel asks.

"How was I supposed to tell you that I am only here because Alexander needs his father and I need you while I die? I was hoping I would go into remission and then live a few more years before having to tell you," I say. Samuel takes my hand in his only to have me pull it away quickly. "Don't do that, you are just being nice to me because I am dying."

"No, I am your husband and I love you. I care about you, I want to help you through it," Samuel says.

"You have not been my husband for years! You never came looking for me or asked Bran if he knew where I was or even asked Mercy! You let me leave without fighting for me! Get out of this room now! You are only being nice because we had sex the other night!" I snap.

"That is not true! I care about you and I did not go after you because you did not make a hint you wanted me to chase you!" Samuel snaps back. I turn and punch him in the face before letting out a scream of anger and pain. Adam jumps between us when I start to follow Samuel to finish what I started.

"Stop, Marie," Adam coos. He pulls me into his arms to calm me down a little more while Samuel storms out of the room. I sob into Adam's chest from all the pent up emotions that I held down all these years.


	7. Chapter 7

Alexander smiles as we play a card game in my hospital room. Bran chuckles when Alexander gets a jackpot of cards and ends up winning in the process. I smile softly at my baby boy playing with Bran with a big smile. Mercy comes in with some food in the cafeteria with a small grimace at what she was able to get. Bran cleans up the cards to let Alexander have a small snack and I pull him close so I can clean his face before eating. Samuel has not come back to see us since my attack on him the other day.

"Marie, let me take Alexander home for a bit," Mercy says.

"What? Why?" I ask quickly.

"Because he needs to get some sleep in his own bed and spend some time with his father. Samuel is missing his son very much right now and needs some comforting after the news he just got about you," Mercy says. Alexander looks at me with sad eyes and I caress his face with a smile.

"Be good for daddy and do not swindle him in doing things that I do not let you do. I love you, mon ami," I say. Alexander kisses my cheek before scrambling off the bed to get his favorite backpack and then leave with Mercy. Bran waves to Alexander for a moment before turning to me with a raised brow.

"You need to bring Samuel in here, Marie," Bran says calmly.

"No, I am not talking to him and you know why," I say. I reach for the remote, but Bran swipes it out of my reach and smiles like a little kid. "Bran, you are not my alpha so I do not have to listen to you."

"I may not be your alpha, but I am still your father-in-law legally and your son's grandfather. You are married to my oldest son who has seen many of the women he loves die along with many children. Alexander is a blessing to me and Samuel just like Charles was. You may not live as long as the rest of us, but giving a full life however long it may be to Samuel is something he will never forget. His wolf chose you completely that when you left, he was not the same when he came back to live with us in Montana. Marie, you gave him a life again and a beautiful son and daughter. He missed out a few years in your lives together and I think you both deserve to take those years back before it is too late," Bran says.

"I am not talking to him," I say. My head begins to throb again from where they did the surgery and I close my eyes. "Can you dim the lights or close the curtains?"

"Sure, sweetheart," Bran says. There is a soft knock on the door when Bran closes the curtains and we turn to see Samuel standing in the doorway.

"You called for me, da?" Samuel asks, taking a few steps into the room.

"You did what?" I panic, turning to Bran.

"Close the door, Samuel," Bran says, ignoring me. Samuel closes the door and walks into the room a little more. "You two need to talk things out and get back together for Alexander's sake and even mine."

"We are not going to talk about anything, Bran. So you can stop pushing that damn button," I grumble.

"Marie, talk to my son because he deserves to know as to why now you arrive to be in his life and to bring Alexander into his life," Bran says. I throw my cup at the wall with a scream to make him stop and my heart monitor goes crazy. Samuel runs over to calm me down before someone comes in or before something else happens to me.

"I did not come back to Samuel for someone to watch me lose all my senses, to wipe my ass when I use the restroom, to wipe my drool, or anything like that! I did it so Alexander knew his father before I left him alone in this world. He only had me and Mercy for his whole life and I could let social services dump him with someone who did not know he existed or may not want to keep him around. I came here for my son not for this man that never came after me or asked his father where I was or even how I was! Get away from me both you," I snap. My heart rates picks up too quickly and Samuel takes my hand, but it sets me off even more.

"Marie, relax before you hurt yourself," Samuel says. His soothing voice calms me a little and I look at him with tears running down my face.

"We always knew you were going to outlive me and there was nothing we could do about it. We said it even when we were dating," I sob. Samuel kisses the top of my hand gently with tears in his own eyes. "I cannot become a wolf like you or become immortal like you. This day was bound to come, but we never thought it come so soon. I love you and always have loved you all these years. I was never unfaithful to you while I was away and I never dated anyone because I kept your ring on my finger to tell everyone I was taken and was waiting for my husband to come back home to me. I waited for years for you to call me or come find me, but you never called or came for me. You and Alexander are going to need each other when I am gone because he will need someone to protect him and to teach him about his heritage. Alexander may be just like Charles when he gets older with being a wolf and having Native American in him, but he will need his father to tell him stories about his mother because you know me better then anyone in the family. Promise to take care of him."

"You are not going to die because I am not going to everything I can to keep it from happening. I will find a way to make you live forever with me," Samuel says softly to hide his voice breaking through his tears.

"How? I am not a normal human because of my heritage," I weakly say. When Samuel does not come up with an answer, I nod my head slowly and close my eyes so I can rest a little. Samuel does not let go of my hand as I drift off to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

I awake the next morning to someone caressing my face and I open my eyes to see Alexander smiling at me as he runs his fingers up and down my face. My sweet boy is not alone because Samuel is still in his white coat standing at the end of the bed going over my chart from last night with one of the nurses. Alexander turns to his father with a wide smile and Samuel looks up with his wise grey eyes. My heart aches in regret of being angry with him the other, but I see in his eyes that there is some good news he has for me. The nurse leaves with my chart, closing the door behind her, while Samuel scoops Alexander up in his arms to sit on the bed with me next to him and Alexander on his lap.

"Charles and I spoke on the phone this morning," Samuel says softly. He leans over to kiss my cheek that I extended to him with a small smile and takes my hand.

"What did you two Cornick brothers talk about behind your poor old father's back?" I tease.

"Apparently you and Mercy may have the ability to live a long time because of your father's heritage," Samuel says. I stiffen a bit with the image of me fighting my brain cancer for the rest of eternity. "Charles is going to see what he can find and so is Bran, but we are going to find a way to have you live as long as I do. I told Bran that I will not be able to live without you and I want to die when our little boy dies."

"Sammy, you cannot do that," I whisper. Samuel chuckles at his pet name and lifts my hand to his mouth to kiss my knuckles softly.

"You are the one for me and I will not let my wolf pick a vile woman like Bran did. He was hurt when Charles' mother died and I told myself I would not be like him when I lost the woman I love," Samuel says. Alexander crawls over to cuddle with me and he lays his head on my chest just like when he was sick.

"We will see what they find and decide from there," I say. "How have you been, my little prince?"

"Okay, Aunt Mercy took me to the park before daddy got off work. She had to go somewhere tonight," Alexander says. I raise a brow at Samuel, who shakes his head about wanting to discuss it now.

"Were you a good prince for daddy?" I ask. Alexander looks at his father and the two of them share a small laugh.

"Daddy taught me how to play the guitar and how to sing the songs he learned at my age," Alexander says. I kiss the top of my boy's head with a smile while rubbing his shoulder and my other hand still in Samuel's. Someone knocks on the door and we all turn to see Adam and Mercy at the door.

"Hey, can we come in?" Adam asks. Alexander giggles as he jumps off the bed to run to hug Mercy's leg. Adam walks over with a bag of my clothes and hands it to Samuel. "The SUV is parked out front for when you guys are ready to go. Mercy rode with me to be with Marie and we have the spare carseat already set up."

"Is it time to go home already?" I ask. Samuel looks at me with a big smile, answering my question.

"You had a great surgery and the scans from yesterday were fine," Samuel says. "Adam is going to take you to the trailer where someone will take care of you while I am at work and Mercy will call to check on you."

"Promise to not be too protective of me," I say to Samuel and Adam.

"They make no promises, Marie. This guy over here installed cameras and stuff in my garage without asking me," Mercy taunts. I smile at my sister and look down at my son, only to see he is not smiling.

"Mon ami, come here," I say. Alexander shuffles over slowly and stands by the bed. "What is the matter, my little prince?"

"I do not want you to leave here, mommy," Alexander says.

"Why not, baby?" I ask.

"You are better here because your face is brighter and your eyes shine like before. You are my mommy again without the pain and worry when you are here. You are near daddy during the day and safe," Alexander says.

"Do you remember what I told you to think about during times like this?" I ask with a small smile.

"I think it, but it hurts because you told me it and you are sick. I no want to lose you, mommy," Alexander sniffles and runs out the room. My instinct to run after him is halted when Samuel stops me and Adam goes after him.

"I need to go get him," I protest. "I need to go get my son, my baby needs me."

"Marie, Adam is getting him and bringing him back," Samuel says. I panic in fear of what my son could be thinking, since I too lost my adopted mother to cancer but I was older then he was. Adam returns with a struggling, crying little boy and gives him to me. I cradle my son to me while singing his little lullaby while he cries and struggles to get free. Alexander calms down soon with soft hiccups and his face in the crook of my neck.

"Let's go home, have some ice cream, and watch movies while playing some cards. How does that sound, mon ami?" I whisper. Alexander holds onto me tightly when I stand with Samuel's help to walk out as I am to get my son out of the hospital and away from his fear of losing me.

* * *

Samuel sits with me on our bed after putting Alexander to sleep later that day. I am reading a book from my library of books I never read over the years and Samuel is watching me carefully. It gets to the point that I put my book down and turn to him with a raised brow. He scoots down under the covers from my look playfully and I cannot help but giggle. We spoke about what is happen next between us and we decided to take it slow like when we started dating to rekindle our love again.

"I miss your hair, it was wild," Samuel chuckles. My hair before my surgery was black with blonde tips for the ombre look and it fell down past my shoulders.

"You only like it because you rarely saw my hair out of my scrub cap or me bandana at work or home," I say. Samuel sits up to kiss my now bald head and he chuckles.

"I like it now and hope to see your beautiful head of hair again," Samuel says happily. "Hopefully it grows back soon if the scans say they got it all out."

"Hey, no bad thoughts before bed," I say. Samuel smiles at me sadly while caressing my face.

"Well, since no bad thoughts are not allowed in our bed like old times, then tell me what Alexander was like when he was just tiny boy," Samuel says. He settles us onto the bed with the lights off and me tucked into his arms safely, as I recount my time raising our sweet boy.


	9. Chapter 9

My scars are healing and I am able to do more then walk a few feet and have to sit. Alexander is watching a show on the Discovery channel after I nagged Mercy about getting something besides the boring cable. I am making lunch for us to enjoy with Samuel when he got off from working the night shift at the hospital. Samuel managed to talk the board at the hospital to allow me to be on sick leave until I am well enough to be at work and only my doctors can clear me to go back. I smile at the happiness I am feeling with the added feeling of me being whole once more and I like it very much. A car pulls up to the house outside and Alexander runs to see it if is Samuel. His shouts of excitement makes me laugh as I walk to open the front door. Samuel pulls up to the house with a tired look that soon disappears when he sees me at the door. He rushes to get out of the truck to run over and pull me into his arms for a deep kiss, before he pulls away and heads inside to see Alexander. I close the door to the sound of Alexander's giggles matched well with Samuel's laugh and then go to finish making lunch. Samuel leaves Alexander to his tv show to join me in the already small kitchen with his arms around my waist and his nose pressed against my neck.

"You smell like me," Samuel purrs.

"Well, I did have to use your towel and I am wearing your shirt," I giggle. Samuel nods while kissing my neck sweetly. "How was work? Busy night?"

"No, it was boring and I thought about you alone in our bed all night long," Samuel grumbles. I hear the soft patter of Alexander's feet coming to the kitchen and he barrels into Samuel and I.

"Mommy, can we go to the park after my nap?" Alexander asks with a big smile on his face. I caress his beautiful face from his tan skin to his gray eyes, his face was a good mix of mine and Samuel, his curls were a surprise for everyone, but he is still my angel.

"We will see, baby," I say softly. "Go wash up for lunch with daddy and we can eat while watching a cartoon together."

"Okay," Alexander says while taking off to clean up. Samuel kisses me behind the ear with a big smile.

"You are great with him, I always know you would make a great mother," Samuel says. He goes to change out of his work clothes while I get the food on plates for everyone. Alexander sits on my lap while he eats his lunch with Samuel on the floor next to us and a cartoon on the tv. Samuel finishes his food first and is the first to start falling asleep. Alexander follows suit after and begins to rub his sleepy eyes after eating only half his lunch. I carry my little boy to his room first to his bed before going after the big boy. Samuel is almost asleep when I return for him and it makes it hard for me to get him to our room before he falls asleep completely. The moment his head touches the pillow, he is snoring softly and gone to the world. I hold in my laugh as I close the door to go clean up our dishes when Mercy comes home.

"Where are the boys?" Mercy asks.

"Asleep for their naps," I say with a big smile. Mercy falls onto the couch with a sigh and I bring her a plate for lunch. "How was your day so far?"

"Boring as can be and I wish you would consider helping me in the front office a bit," Mercy grumbles. I hit her with my towel to stop her from continuing her speech on me helping her. She laughs as she eats and I do the dishes in the kitchen. "Hey, I am going to be out later tonight so I will not be home for dinner."

"Why? Are you going out with Adam tonight?" I tease.

"No, mother, I am just going out by myself," Mercy laughs. "Besides, you and the boys need some family time anyways."

"You are family too, sweetie," I say. Mercy looks up at me from her plate and smiles. "You have always been family and you always will be."

"Thanks," Mercy says softly. She finishes her food and goes to get a few things from her room before heading back to the garage. I check on Alexander to see he is sleeping contently with his hands up near his face and snoring softly. I head to my room to find Samuel sprawled out on our bed on his stomach with his hands tucked under his pillow. He is also snoring and does not notice me watching him or me collecting our laundry. As I am walking out the door, Samuel's cell phone rings and he scrambles to get it. I touch his face to get him back to sleep after running over and take the phone out of the room. The caller is Adam or someone using Adam's phone.

"Hello, Samuel's phone," I say politely.

"Oh, is this Samuel's number?" a teenage voice asks.

"Yes, this Samuel's phone. Might I ask who is calling?" I say.

"This is Jesse from next door and I was calling to speak to Samuel or Mercy about something. Not to be rude, but are you Mercy's twin sister who is married to Samuel?" the call says.

"Yes, I am Marie and Samuel is asleep right now, but I may be able to help. I am a doctor as well," I say with a smile.

"No, I can come by in a few minutes. It is a girl issue," Jesse says.

"Okay, we are home if you want to come by," I say sweetly. Jesse and I hang up moments after discussing when she could over and Samuel rolls onto his side with a groan. I crawl onto the bed to get him to go back to sleep, but he protests like a child until I caress his face. "Like father like son, huh, baby? Get some sleep now, I am here."

"Marie," Samuel groans before falling asleep. I hum to Samuel softly to get him to fall back to sleep, but he is unable to sleep for long. "Marie."

"Baby, it is okay," I say sweetly. Samuel sits up against the headboard and he looks at me with sleepy eyes.

"I keep dreaming you are in my arms and that you look like you are asleep, but I know in my heart you are dead. I have this dream almost every night and it makes me stay up at night just to make sure you are still alive and breathing. I lost you once and I do not want to lose you again," Samuel says.

"You need to sleep right now, please get some sleep," I beg him softly. Samuel fights me when I try to get him to lay down and he gets off the bed.

"No, I will not sleep in fear of waking up to you dead next to me," Samuel snaps. I walk out of our room to let him be alone and to call the two people that know how to get him to calm down.


	10. Chapter 10

Charles gets onto the phone after a woman answers it and he sounds surprised to hear me calling. We have only met a few times in the past few years and he has been helping me cope with my heritage and my gifts. I smile to hear Charles step outside of his house to speak to me.

"Marie, what is the matter?" Charles asks.

"Charles, I am calling about Samuel," I say softly.

"What about him? What has happened?" Charles asks quickly.

"Relax, mon cherie, Samuel is safe. He is just refusing to sleep because of a dream is having and he is hoping one day you will be able to tell me something good about my chances of living forever," I say.

"Marie, you know I have not found anything because our difference of tribes. Samuel just needs to relax," Charles says.

"What has Bran found?" I ask, hoping to be able to tell something good to Samuel when I go back into the room.

"Nothing as of yet, but we are still looking. How are you doing though? Fighting this out like the tough girl you are?" Charles says. He has always messed with me since I was more in touch with my Native American side then Mercy when I found out.

"I am fine and no I have not been doing any magic through this. I need to go check on Samuel, but please call the moment you find something," I say. We hang up after brief goodbyes and I listen to see if Samuel is awake, but it is too quiet. I open the door to be attacked by Samuel and he holds me close to him.

"Please do not leave me," Samuel begs.

"Let's go lay on our bed like we used to when we were dating," I suggest. Samuel nods and walks with me to the bed. Once I am seated on the bed, Samuel lays his head on my lap while I play with his hair and hum a song to him softly. He begins to relax slowly as I continue humming to him and he falls asleep moments before Alexander comes in to join us.

"Mama," Alexander pouts when he sees Samuel already with me. I open my arms for him to cuddle with me anyways and he barrels over, avoiding waking his father. With both my boys laying with me, I smile as I sing softly to them before falling asleep myself peacefully to the sounds of their snores.

* * *

Jessie and I walk to her house after she spends some time at the house with me. Samuel took Alexander to the park and out for a guys night, so I was able to have more alone time with Jessie. I smile at Jessie when she begins to compare me to Mercy because we are two different people despite the fact we are twins. Adam opens the back door for us with a smile when we get to the back porch.

"Hello Marie, how are you feeling?" Adam asks.

"I am better now and I owe you for what you did with getting me to the hospital and then taking care of Alexander," I say.

"Well, you made it up by letting Jessie come and see you. Would you like something to drink?" Adam says. He has backed off on teasing Samuel since the day he took me to the hospital, but he is still a sweet man in hopes of now getting Mercy to fall for him.

"A cup of tea would be nice," I say with a smile. Jessie gives me a hug before heading up to her room and I follow Adam into the kitchen.

"I am having a few pack members come over here soon, but you are free to stay as long as you like," Adam says.

"Well, since you offered and I am already here," I begin, but stop for a moment. "What do you know about the pack magic exactly?"

"What do you mean?" Adam asks.

"I mean, what do you know about what pack magic can do besides bring everyone together and heal each other and everything people are said? Samuel is worried because I am sick and he is hoping there is some way I can live forever. He has Charles and Bran looking on the pack side and my father's heritage," I say.

"Is this another way to get Samuel to join a pack or start one?" Adam asks. He puts the kettle on the stove and crosses his arms when he looks to me.

"No, I want to know if it is possible for me to live as long as Samuel and you if I make myself part of a pack with Samuel. Is it possible that pack magic can heal me in a small enough way that I will live forever?" I ask, fearing what Adam may or may not know.

"I am not sure because I have never heard of anyone that is not a wolf join a pack. You and Mercy are the first Walkers anyone has seen in years and with werewolves for that fact. Bran must have thought of that, but he knows that if it does not work then Samuel will leave that pack with Alexander the moment you die. You cannot push Samuel into joining a pack again because he does not want to join mine here or Bran's," Adam says. My heart drops at the unknown possibility as the kettle begins to scream out.

"Mercy is the only one that can become a coyote," I say softly. "I did not get that gene exactly, but I became in touch with my healer side to make up for what I lacked. I do not know if I can shift, but I know that everyone believes I am like Mercy."

"How did you give birth to two children then?" Adam asks.

"The same way you have Jessie," I say with a small smile. "Alexander was a miracle for me to take to full term and have him be healthy like he is now. But, I believe him being healthy is because I prayed for his health over mine and I was given any illness my boy should have had. It is a trade I was willing to take when Saralynn was dying in her first month after being born. I am not immortal like you or able to shift like Mercy, but I was able to give the man I love a healthy son for the first time in years and give our boy a possible chance he could live forever at his father's side."

"Have you thought about going through the change?" Adam asks, pouring the hot water into a cup for me.

"Once, but Samuel would be afraid of me not being able to survive it and he hates being useless when it comes to things like that," I sigh.

"What are other ways you know you are not a shifter like any of us?" Adam says. I take the cup from him to smell the scent of peppermint wafting up into my nose.

"I am unable to because I have tried," I say into my cup. We continue to talk until some of his pack members arrive and I begin to head back home, but stop when I hear a familiar scream. Adam hears it too when he looks at me and we run out to see Mercy running to the house naked. I drop the cup to run to get Mercy the moment I see something in the shape of a horse coming up behind her. "Mercy!"

"Marie! Run!" Mercy screams. I reach for her hand when Adam jumps over me and her to charge at the creature. Mercy grabs onto me tightly as I run with her into the house and everything begins to blur around me like it is only a memory. I watch Ben jump through a window, shattering glass all around us and cutting Mercy a bit. Peter runs out with a sword after talking to Mercy and I black out for a moment to find myself later watching Adam being carried out of the river, soaked from his inability to swim. Jessie and I take Mercy to Adam's bathroom to clean her off for a moment before the big angry wolf comes up.

"Try to keep your father out of here until I say so," I tell Jessie. Mercy holds onto me tightly as we go into the bathroom and get the shower running. Honey watches us from the bathroom door in curiosity while I murmur soothing words to Mercy. "Mon cheri, it is alright."

"Marie," Mercy says shakily. I get her under the spray of the water when I hear Adam's growl and his heavy footsteps.

"Honey, close the door and keep him out," I say. Honey closes the door quickly before Adam can come in. Mercy holds my hand tightly as she lets the water fall down her back.

"There is glass everywhere," Mercy murmurs. I smile at my sister's concern and kiss her hand.

"You know I do not care about those things when my sister is hurt. Bran did warn me about you getting in trouble constantly," I say. Adam opens the door angrily and I stand up to block his view of Mercy. "Get out, Adam."

"You do not tell me what to do. Let me see her," Adam growls.

"Get out!" I scream. Adam is taken aback a bit at my sudden command, but does not move. "You will not come near my sister right now because she is hurt and she is my responsibility!"

"Adam," Peter says when he comes to the bathroom. I growl when his eyes sees Mercy and he bows his head.

"My car," Mercy murmurs. She says something about her car being somewhere, but I cannot pick it up. Peter takes off to go get it and to leave me with my Mexican stand-off with Adam.

"Move out of my way, Marie, I do not want to hurt you," Adam says. His eyes are still yellow from his recent change, but I am not backing down. He shifts his foot to come closer, but I move with him.

"I had two older brothers and I lived with a werewolf, do not think I am not afraid to stand my ground because I am not and I am not pack to you," I hiss. Mercy grabs my pant leg to distract me for a moment and I turn to see her warning look.

"Marie, stop before you start something," Mercy says. Jessie comes in with some clothes for Mercy and she leaves them at the door to get away quickly. Adam is still persistent in helping, but I am in his way of getting close to Mercy. If I do not back down soon, he may make me a smaller threat then I think I am by getting me out of his way.

"Are you ready to come out of the shower?" I ask, ignoring her warning. Mercy nods while standing slowly while I reach for a towel and she covers herself from Adam. I get her into a big towel that smells like Adam and she leans into me. "Mercy, it is alright. We will get you home and I will make you some tea with my herbs to help you feel better."

"She cannot leave yet," Adam says. I look at him with a glare and he bows his head a little.

"My sister," I snap. Adam watches me help Mercy get dressed and look at her wounds on her feet. We are there for an hour or so when we are ready to go home. The wolves watch me give Mercy a piggyback ride to the fence and then help her walk slowly to the trailer. Samuel's truck is in front of the house and he is sitting on the couch alone when we get inside. He looks at me with a question, but I shake my head before he can ask. Mercy makes it to her bed with a small whimper from her hurt body while I go to get her a cup of healing tea made for her. When I enter her room, she is curled up as best she can in her blankets.

"You could have been killed from what you did to Adam," Mercy says. I put the cup on her bedside table and sit on the edge of her bed. "What did you do to make him listen?"

"Nothing, I just stood up for myself like a good human," I say while caressing her hair. "You need to stay out of trouble, my sweet sister, I am not going to able to explain to our mother how you got hurt this time or any other time. Also add in the fact, she does not know I am even here with you."

"You have not told mom you are living with me? She is going to kill us both," Mercy says with a smile.

"Get some rest, drink your tea, and I will check on you in the morning," I say. Mercy closes her eyes when I get up and begin to sing a soft song for her to sleep well and walk out of her room.


	11. Chapter 11

Adam comes to the house the next morning to see Mercy, but Samuel keeps him outside for a moment. I step outside with my arms crossed over my chest and my head held high. Samuel looks over at me when Adam sees me come outside and the two are a little on edge.

"What do you want now? Going to threaten me for caring for my sister?" I ask with anger.

"Marie, Adam is only here to see Mercy," Samuel says. "Please watch your tone when you speak to Adam like that."

"No, I was wrong for what I did the other day and I am sorry. Mercy is your sister and you knew more about caring for her then I did in my angry state. I am sorry and want to thank you for caring for her," Adam says. "How is it you were able to stand up to me at that time?"

"I do not fear you or death," I say plainly. "I am a healer and will put the sick and wounded people before myself. You might call me a shaman, but women being a shaman is not seen often."

"I see," Adam says. "Is Mercy awake right now? I would like to speak to her about what happened yesterday."

"Go on in," I say. "Alexander, come outside with me."

"Okay, mama," Alexander says. He runs past Adam to join me and Samuel outside for a short walk. Samuel puts our son on his back as we walk and he wraps an arm around my waist. I lean against Samuel with a big smile as we enjoy this moment. Alexander points to a fox he sees and wants to chase it, which Samuel obliges our son's request.

"You feeling alright?" Samuel asks.

"Yes, I am fine," I say. "Just a little worried about Mercy and her constantly getting into trouble. I am sure Bran and everyone else has tried everything they can to keep her out of trouble, but knowing my sister she never listens to anyone but herself."

"Hey, you are the same way," Samuel chuckles. "Do you remember when we first met and you were so insistent on taking that one patient that needed a surgery on the spot?"

"How do you remember that? My god," I laugh. "We were at the crash site of a huge car pile up and could not get the patient transported to the hospital in time to get him into surgery. I had seen and aided in a few surgeries before that and figured I could do it."

"Yes, but you did it without the help of a another resident and you were not a full fledged surgeon exactly. I remember hearing you saved the person's life with your death defying stunt when you did the surgery with what you were provided and knew you would get in trouble for it. That was the day I fell in love you because you not only saved a person life, but you risked your career to save that person even if you got in trouble in the end," Samuel says.

"Okay, what about the first patient we had together?" I giggle.

"Ah yes, the arguing husband and wife," Samuel sighs with a smile. "He was cleaning out the gutter or something the wife saw as dangerous and he fell breaking his leg and arm. You were the only orthopedic surgeon available and we pulled you away from your physical therapy place. How did you manage to be both a surgeon and a physical therapist by the way?"

"I asked for less surgeries so I could help my patients from beginning to the end. It was the only thing I wanted to do the most because I hate handing off my unfinished work to someone else. I got great reviews from patients though," I say. Samuel kisses the top of my head while rubbing my shoulder as we watch our son play with a bunny he found. "We have come a long way since then, haven't we?"

"Indeed we did, now we are parents and married," Samuel mutters.

"I never liked you at first," I admitted. Samuel looks at me with a shocked look on his handsome face. "I am being serious, I never liked you when I saw you. You were an handsome and smart man, but you seemed distant and like you were a person that got everything he wanted in his life. You did not talk to many people or make many friends and were always around me, so that made you a big of a stalker."

"Maribella Aurora Thompson-Cornick, I should punish you for saying that to me after all these years," Samuel teases. I laugh when Samuel pulls me in close to him and kisses all over my face with a laugh of his own. Alexander runs over to us and hugs my leg tightly. Samuel and I stop laughing to look at our boy to see he is crying. "Alex, what is the matter?"

"There is someone over there trying to tell me to go to the water," Alexander sniffles. I pick him up quickly while looking around for a sign of anyone.

"We need to go back now, Alexander is not safe," I say quickly. Samuel grabs my hand and we run as fast as we can to get away from whatever is trying to get Alexander. We make it in one piece back to the trailer and I barrel inside with Alexander held tight to me. He is crying with his hands over his ears as I run inside. Mercy and Adam run out to see what is going on and Mercy slides to me.

"What happened?" Mercy asks.

"He tried to eat Alexander! He wanted my boy!" I panic. Mercy holds me in her arms when I begin to shake from my adrenaline while Adam heads outside to check on Samuel. The three of us remain inside the house while the two wolf men check around the house to find whoever wants to eat Mercy and Alexander.


	12. Chapter 12

Almost a week has gone by since the incident with Mercy and Alexander with no other problems. Adam is busy with a few things for Bran while Samuel is working a little late at work, leaving me alone with Jessie at Mercy's house. While the kids are playing in the living room, I am making something for my upset stomach in the kitchen. The phone rings and I rush to go get it, not remembering about my stomach at all.

"Hello?" I try to sound normal.

"Did you run to the phone even with your upset stomach?" Samuel asks with a smile in his voice.

"No," I lie, hoping he does not notice. "What is this wonderful call about?"

"Just calling to check on you to see how you are doing," Samuel says lovingly.

"We are fine, Jessie is with Alexander playing a game together and it might be cards since that boy knows how to play a good game of gold fish. I am making something to settle my stomach before sitting down to wait for Mercy to come back home," I give him a short report.

"Take care of yourself and I should be home in a couple of hours," Samuel says. We hang up after a few minutes of mushy goodbyes and Jessie laughs at me.

"What is ever so funny, Jessie?" I ask with a smile.

"You are just really different from Mercy is all," Jessie says. "She is all tough and proud and stubborn, but you are soft compared to her."

"Mama not soft, mama is mean because she once made a biker man cry for almost hitting her car. She made a doctor cry at her old job because he did not do his job right when I was sick. Mama is scary sometimes, but I love her," Alexander says. I smile at my darling boy and go back to making my tea when the phone rings again. Jessie gets to it before me and her voice stiffens a bit when she speaks to the caller. I take the phone from her quickly before she hears anything else.

"Adam, what is it?" I ask quickly.

"Leave Jessie with Alexander and come to the garage. Something is wrong with Mercy," Adam says. I hang up and gather my stuff before leaving in a hurry. Jessie listens to the orders I am barking at her as I run out the door and out to the car. Instead of getting into the car, I mutter enchantment to turn myself into the fastest animal I can think of which is a bird and I fly to the garage. I arrive to see a strange car sitting in front of the garage while shifting back and I kick the door open as best as I can.

"Mercy?!" I scream. I walk around slowly without a weapon in my hand and listen as carefully as I can to the sounds. Something moves to my left and I turn a little too slow to see someone jump at me. With a scream I attack the person to get them off of me, but the person is fighting back harder then I am expecting.

"Tell me you love me, Mercy!" the person growls. I realise then that the person really believes I am Mercy in the dark and a trigger in my head causes me to want to protect my sister from this evil person. I punch the person hard and crawl away to get a crowbar, but Mercy hits the person first quickly before running off and shifting to her coyote form. The attacker is angry at me with one hand on their head and the other grappling at me when I try to get away.

"Please help us spirits above," I mutter. The door crashes open and Adam lets out a roar as he changes halfway and attacks the person on me. Within seconds, I am on my feet and in the office getting away from Adam as far as I can. Mercy's whimper catches my ear and I rush to find her, but she is hidden too far. I do not realise I shift over into her form until I crawl up next to her to comfort her. We remain like this until we hear the voices of Adam and a few of his pack members. Mercy hides herself against me while I block her from anyone that tries to get to her.

"Where are they?" Adam asks once more. "Samuel is going to kill us if he finds out we lost not only Mercy, but Marie too."

"I can smell they were here, but I would have seen the two of them leave," a voice says. I see someone's feet standing in front of us on the shelf and let out a soft growl. "There, I heard that!"

"They are down here," Adam says. He crouches down and reaches to grab whom he thinks is Mercy, but I bit his hand while changing into a wolf to pin him to let Mercy escape. "What in hell?!"

"Who is that?" the other person says. Mercy comes out with whine for me and I go over to cover her with my body. Everyone there watches me lean down to pick up Mercy by the scruff of her neck with my mouth and attempt to run out the door. But, everyone blocks my path to the door and I become on edge. Adam walks over with a hand extended out to me and I place Mercy down to change back to my normal form. Mercy changes back and tackles Adam in fear when she sees it is really him. My breathing is heavy while I scoot to a wall, exhausted from whatever magic I allowed to use just now and try to keep my eyes open.

"Call Samuel to hurry over here," Adam says. Everything fuzzes around me like water is pulling me into the soft waves while a gentle lullaby sings to me softly. I have been here before when I found out I was pregnant with both my children and when I first learned about my gift as a healer. I am a gifted healer because I am the first woman to be one and to be gifted as a walker. The song is soon joined by the sound of Samuel's voice calling my name and I am taken back to the present moment. Samuel is holding me in his arms with his big jacket covering me while saying my name softly.

"Sammy," I whisper. Samuel smiles at me and caresses my face gently.

"Hey, you did a good job," Samuel says. I nod my head and curl up in his arms a little more. "Let's get Mercy to the hospital and then you back home to sleep."

"Okay," I grumble before letting myself drift back to where I was.

* * *

Mercy has been at Adam's for a few days because he wants to care for her and I am at the trailer stuck in my own bed. Samuel lays with me on the bed with his arms around me while I mutter another enchantment in my half daze sleep. My sudden ability to change shape into any animal has made Samuel worried about me because I spent a whole day changing into those different animals, only to be stuck between a coyote and a wolf but mostly a wolf. I lean over the bed to let my head dangle off for a moment and curse the evil chemotherapy.

"Maybe we should call Charles," Samuel says.

"No, I need to go and see him or just lay here and die like I was supposed to," I grumble. Samuel lets go of me quickly and gets off the bed.

"Marie, do not say that," Samuel begs.

"I mean it, I am supposed to die because I gave my health to Alexander so he could live and you would have your son. You were never meant to know so it would have hurt you as much. If you do not like it then I can take Alexander and go to Bran's," I say.

"No, you are going to stay here and you are not going to die!" Samuel shouts. I sit up too quickly and chuck a cup from my side of the bed at him.

"Shut up and get out! You have failed in every thing between us! You let me go all those years ago and you are going to let me go die now! Get out!" I scream. Alexander runs into the room before Samuel can respond and runs to me.

"Mama, no screaming," Alexander says. Samuel storms out of the house and leaves in his truck. Our first fight in years and he runs off just like he did the day I left, a repeat of history until the end.


	13. Chapter 13

Samuel returns a few hours after our fight and I am holding Alexander while he sleeps still in our bed. He looks at me with sad eyes while standing in the doorway of our room. I reach out my free hand to him to walk over, but he does not move. After a few more minutes of being stared at, I decide to lay down with Alexander and ignore him for his silence. The bed divots a little when Samuel sits down behind me on the bed and one his hands comes up to caress my hand that was resting my hip.

"I am terrified on losing you because I love you and you just came back into my life. There must be something that we can do to fight this illness," Samuel says softly. "I am not going to give up on you now or ever."

"I never asked you to give up," I say softly. Samuel lays down behind me to hold me in his arms gently and I smile softly. "We will get through this together as a family."

"Yes, we are a family now," Samuel mutters. He buries his nose into my hair and begins to drift off to sleep. I listen to the boys sleeping before I too fall asleep to dream about the place that I went to recently. The sound of waves eases me awake into the dream to see that the sun is stuck after the beginning of setting. I look around waiting for someone to come over to me just like the last time, but instead of a human it is a wolf that comes over with coyote not far behind. The wolf is a beautiful black and white, looking more like a big husky, and the fox is white like those found up near the arctic. I looks into their eyes to see that they are not here to hurt me, but to protect me. The wolf gives a small nod before I drift back to the real world when Alexander jumps on the bed to wake me and Samuel up.

"Alexander, stop bouncing on the bed," I growl. Alexander sits down next to me and he giggles.

"Mommy, it is time to get up," Alexander says. I look at the clock to see it is almost nine in the morning, Samuel still has me wrapped in his arms and I sigh before struggling free of him. He groans while pulling me closer and I hiss at a small pain he causes in my abdomen.

"Samuel, let go," I grumble. Samuel lets me go reluctantly so I can use the bathroom before going to make breakfast. I shuffle to the kitchen to get Alexander a bowl of cereal with some soy milk before going to go shower. Once the water is warm enough, I step in to feel the water fall onto me and seep into my bones to warm me from the inside out. The door opens and I look to see Samuel standing in the bathroom looking at me in the shower.

"May I join you?" Samuel asks sleepily.

"Who is watching Alexander?" I ask quickly.

"He is alright and I will be able to hear him," Samuel says while stripping out of his clothes to get into the small shower. His large body makes it smaller for me, but he holds me close. I caress his face gently while his hands slowly and gently caress my back and my arm. Samuel leans down to kiss me sweetly on the lips when my hands slide around his neck to pull him to me. I let out a soft moan when Samuel's hand slides down my back to caress my ass cheek. We are still making out when the bathroom door is kicked open and Mercy barges in.

"Hey!" Mercy shouts. I jump, headbutting Samuel in the face, and throw a bottle of shampoo at Mercy. Samuel rubs his face as I scream at my sister to get her out and she laughs at me. It takes me five minutes to get her to leave and Samuel is smiling widely at me.

"What are you smiling at?" I ask, still upset at what happened.

"Nothing, let's get you cleaned up so we can go out for a bit," Samuel says. I smile as I watch him grab the soap and begin to clean my first, which is bliss because he ends up teasing me at the same time. Mercy is reading with Alexander when I emerge in my clothes for the day while Samuel gets dressed.

"You look better," I say. Mercy looks up with an evil smile from earlier and I growl at her softly.

"Have you and Samuel taken your honeymoon yet?" Mercy asks.

"No, we eloped and were too busy with work to be able to go on our honeymoon or even have a wedding," I say. "Why? What did you do?"

"Oh, nothing," Mercy says innocently. "I was just wondering. Can I take Alexander with me to work?"

"Oh! Can I go mommy?" Alexander begs. I look at my little boy to see his sparkling eyes at spending a day with his aunt at the garage and notice my little boy needs a haircut.

"Only if Aunt Mercy takes you to get your hair cut later," I try to compromise. Alexander and Mercy share a high five before running off to get ready to leave. It is a good thing that Mercy is going back to work and even better she wants to spend it with Alexander. Maybe he will learn some tricks of her trade and take over the garage when he gets older. Samuel comes out with a towel still on his head with the same sparkly eyes as Alexander. I giggle when Samuel walks over to pull me into his arms and use the towel as a shield when he kisses me.

"So, Alexander is spending the day with Mercy leaving you and I alone together," Samuel purrs.

"No, I have an appointment with my oncologist about the MRI I had a week ago. You can come with," I giggle. Samuel caresses my cheek lovingly and kisses where the scarf sits on my forehead.

"Good thing I do not have to work today," Samuel mutters. Mercy takes my car with Alexander's carseat and I wave to them as they leave before me and Samuel with a big smile when I see how excited Alexander is about going with his aunt to her work. I get into Samuel's car while he locks the door while thinking about what Mercy asked me. Samuel reaches over to take my hand gently when he notices my silence and he kisses the top of it.

"Such a gentleman," I say with a smile. "Your father will be proud to know he raised a good man."

"He knows what kind of man I am," Samuel chuckles. "I am more worried about what is on your mind. You seem a little distracted after Alex went with Mercy."

"It is just something she asked me earlier," I say. Samuel waits for me to continue on to what Mercy said and I let out a small sigh. "She asked if we ever went on our honeymoon."

"What did you tell her?" Samuel asks, pulling to a stop at a red light.

"The truth that we eloped and were busy with work to go anywhere really. Why? What was I supposed to tell her?" I say.

"You told her the truth and that is all that mattered," Samuel says. We arrive at the hospital in silence, one of us thinking about the thought of being married and never had a honeymoon and the other thinking about the appointment. Samuel keeps his arm around my waist while we walk through the hospital, upsetting a few of the nurses. As we sit in the waiting room, Samuel plays with my hands lovingly and saying how my beautiful hands not only heal people, but hold his broken heart. I laugh at his mushy talk when he puts them on his chest with a smile and bats his eyelashes at me. We sit like this until we are called into the doctor's office to hear the news on whether or not I am free from death's grip.


	14. Chapter 14

Samuel holds my hand while we sit and wait for the doctor to come in with the results. I look at him with a smile while he fiddles with my wedding band gently and try to keep calm. The doctor walks in a smile on his face while he walks over to sit at his desk.

"Well, I was not expecting both of you here today. But it is a good thing you are both here, because the scans show that we got all the tumors and you are not showing any new growth," the doctor says. I let out a sigh of relief and Samuel puffs his chest out to hold in his happiness. We leave the doctor after discussing what is to happen next with my job and when I will be able to go back to work. Samuel gets out to the parking lot when he lets out his shout of excitement while spinning me around in his arms. I laugh while holding onto him tightly before he stops and kisses me deeply.

"We need to celebrate tonight or even right now," Samuel says. "We also need to call Bran."

"Sweetheart, breathe," I giggle.

"I am just so glad that you are better and we can be together forever," Samuel says with a big smile on his face and tears in his eyes.

"We can celebrate when we tell everyone, but right now we need to leave the parking lot before someone runs us over," I say. Samuel holds me hand as we walk to the truck and even on our ride back to Mercy's. When we get home, Samuel calls Bran to tell him the good news about my results while I lay on the couch for a moment. I smile at his excited voice as he tells his father there is not too much to worry about. The call is brief, but Samuel is just filled with so much joy that his eyes are sparkling and his smile is really big. I sit up when he walks over to me and sits down next to me, taking his hands with mine.

"We should get remarried and have a big wedding," Samuel says.

"Wait, you want to do what?" I ask quickly.

"Let's get remarried and have a big wedding to make up for the last time," Samuel repeats.

"We never got divorced for us to get remarried and I thought you said you did not want a big wedding when we get married those years ago?" I ask with some confusion.

"I know, but we did not let our family come to see us get married and it was so quick. We can plan out a honeymoon for a few days or something. I just want us to take this good news and start our lives over to live it like we wanted when we got married. I want us to start over to be a happy family," Samuel says.

"Do you really want to do this or are you just filled with too much happiness right now?" I ask with a small smile.

"I mean it and I really want this to happen," Samuel says. I lean forward to kiss him softly an Samuel meets me halfway. Our kiss leads to more in a matter of seconds, making us end up in our bed all day until mercy and Alexander come back home. Alexander pokes his head into our room with a smile and a grease spot still on his face.

"Alexander, what is on your face?" I ask after pulling on Samuel's shirt and a pair of my shorts. Alexander walks over to me while Samuel pulls on his shorts and a shirt with a chuckle.

"We were working and I got a little dirty," Alexander says. I grab a towel to wipe my boy's face off quickly and look at his hair to see he did get a haircut.

"Did you have fun with Aunt Mercy?" Samuel asks.

"Yeah, we had lots of fun and I learned new stuff too," Alexander exclaims with a big smile on his face. I kiss my boy's now clean cheeks to give him a big hug and he holds onto me for a moment. "Did you and daddy have a good day, mommy?"

"We sure did, but we missed you very much," I say. Samuel scoops up Alexander to hug him and I watch the boys with a smile before walking to the living room to let them spend some time together. Mercy is making hot chocolate in the kitchen when I walk in and I hug her from behind to rest my chin on her shoulder.

"How did the visit go?" Mercy asks quietly.

"I am tumor free," I whisper. Mercy giggles while hugging my arms around her closer and I give her a small squeeze. "How are you doing?"

"Better and I have to thank you for letting Alexander go with me. He had so much fun and made the day easier at work. I think he might take over the garage when he gets older," Mercy says.

"At least he would be doing something safe and something he loves," I say. Someone knocks on the door and we turn to see Adam standing at the front door that must have been open. He raises a brow at the two of us and I kiss my sister's cheek before stepping outside for some fresh air. Everything is going well in the house, until a familiar car pulls up to the trailer and mother gets out of the car.

"Maribella Aurora Thompson," mom exclaims when she realises it is me standing in front of her. I wave a little at her when she rushes over to give me a big hug. She has not seen me since Alexander was two because I did not want to hear her nag me about sending the divorce papers to Samuel.

"Hi mom, what are you doing here?" I ask quietly.

"I should be asking you that and how long you have been here without calling me or having Mercy call me. What is with the head scarf, Marie? You are not in the 1920s," mom says. She reaches up to grab the scarf, but I duck away quickly to keep her from seeing my semi-bald head. Mom grumbles about my jumpy attitude when we walk inside the trailer. Alexander runs to see his grandma while I rush to find Mercy getting dressed.

"What is she doing here?" Mercy asks with a soft growl.

"Do not take that tone with me and I do not know why she is here," I hiss. Adam is sitting on the bed like a little boy and I raise a brow when he smiles. "Do I want to know what this lost puppy is doing here?"

"Nope, but you may want to go warn Samuel about mom not knowing you are married to the man I almost ran away with," Mercy says. I panic when I hear Samuel's voice calling for Alexander and run at him to keep him from talking to mom.

"Marie," Samuel protests while I push him into our room. He crosses his arms to wait for an explanation of my sudden panic.

"She does not know who you are except you almost ran off with Mercy when she was sixteen. She knows we are still married, but she thinks you are human," I blurt out with tears in my eyes in fear of the lie I told my whole family years ago.

"Marie, do not be ashamed of what you did, just relax and we will fix this together by telling her the truth," Samuel says. He caresses my face gently before kissing my forehead softly and taking my hand to walk with me to the living room. Mom is talking to Mercy about the incident all over the news and then turns to me when Alexander runs over to me and Samuel.

"Who is this?" mom asks.

"This is Samuel Cornick, Bran's son and the man Mercy tried to run off with years ago," I say softly.

"What is he doing here? Come to make her run off again and break my daughter's heart, both possibly?" mom asks.

"No, Margi, I am not here to break any of your beautiful daughters' hearts because one of them has my whole heart completely. I understand that you know Marie eloped with someone a few years back and she ran away from him for reasons I am not sure you know about," Samuel says. I silently applaud him for remaining calm while standing his ground against mother.

"Yes, it was discussed after it all happened and when she informed me she was pregnant with her son," mom says.

"Well, you may not like me for what I did to Mercy all those years ago, but I am the man that married Marie and I am Alexander's father," Samuel says. The trailer becomes deafly quiet with Mercy and I on edge in fear of what mom will do next.

"Are you going to make her leave you now that she has come back with a child of yours? Are you going to protect her?" mom asks. Samuel bows his head to mom before making his response.

"I will protect both Alexander and Marie with my body until the day I die," Samuel says.

"I will keep you to that because Marie was hurt when she left and yet refuses to tell me as to why she left. Protect my daughter and my grandson," mom says. I rush over to give her a hug to say thank you for approving of Samuel. "Now, Marie, you can have a wedding where I can attend."

"Mom," Mercy pipes up for me. I pull back with a big smile while mom smiles back and caresses my face. When I do not notice, she pulls my scarf off and gasps at what she sees. I step back from her when she tries to find words in her head.

"I was sick, mom," I say for her. "I had brain tumors that were taken out not too long ago, but I was told today that I am cancer free and I am going to live."

"Not you too," mom says. It takes me a moment to realise she is not talking about someone else having cancer, but me also dying at a young age like dad. She walks outside and I look down at the ground. Mercy goes after her to make sure she is okay when something appears in our living room before us. Alexander screams when he sees the mass appear and I gather him into my arms quickly before Samuel pulls us behind him. Mom comes back inside to see what the commotion is about while Mercy walks over.

"Stefan?" Mercy asks. The mass moves at the name and stares at me instead of my sister.

"She knows. Run," the thing says. I cover Alexander's face with my hand while murmuring calming words into his ear. What is going on?


	15. Chapter 15

Adam and Mercy are dealing with the vampire in the trailer while Samuel and I walk with Alexander to Adam's house for the night. Mom left for her hotel in hopes for us to talk tomorrow about my fight with cancer. Alexander is clinging to me while trembling in my arms at what he say. Jesse opens the door for us and I give her a hug for a moment. Alexander goes upstairs with Jesse to be in her room for a little bit while Samuel and I go to settle into the guest suite. I stop Samuel for a moment to look into his eyes to see his wolf is on the edge and he is not happy.

"Samuel," I whisper. He pulls me into his arms tightly to calm himself down long enough to help take care of our scared boy upstairs.

"We need to get you two out of here for a little bit," Samuel says roughly.

"What about you? Alexander will not leave without you," I say.

"I will see what i can do at work for a vacation and you are not working for another month or so. I will call Bran in the morning to tell him we are going there for a little bit," Samuel says.

"I am not staying in his house," I say quickly. Samuel chuckles, slowly relaxing and he kiss the top of my head. We walk into the guest suite to put our things down and decide just to lay on the bed for a moment together, only to end up falling asleep in one another's arms.

* * *

Alexander must have crawled into bed with us some time in the night because he is laying on top of me, crushing my ribs a bit. Samuel is not in the bed and his spot is cold, so he must have been up for awhile now. I gently roll Alexander onto Samuel's spot and get up to find Samuel to see how he is doing. Samuel is on the phone with Bran in the kitchen, making me some tea, and Adam is there listening in. Adam sees me come in and shakes his head to tell me to wait a little, but Samuel senses me there and turns around.

"She is awake now," Samuel says. I walk over to him, only to have him hand the phone off to me and leave the kitchen. Slowly, I put the receiver to my ear while my heart aches a little at wanting to run after Samuel.

"Marie," Bran says.

"Yes, I am here," I say softly to hide my hurt.

"Samuel has informed me he wishes to take you and Alexander away from there with him. But, I think it is best you come with Alexander alone right now," Bran says.

"What? Why? Bran, that will make him think we are abandoning him," I panic.

"Relax, it will be for a little bit. He will join you two after he gets a few things settled at the hospital and see if he will be needed to aid Mercy and Adam. I know this is going to hurt you two, but I need you to come as soon as you can to keep you two safe and let Samuel settle his affairs without worrying about your safety," Bran says.

"Is that why he is hurting?" I ask softly. Adam puts his hand on my shoulder for support when tears fall down my face.

"Yes and I told him to have you begin your drive over either today or tomorrow no later than that. You can do this and you will not be separated for long, trust me," Bran says.

"Okay," I whimper. Bran hangs up the phone and I run to find Samuel quickly. He is standing outside the front door with his face to the light morning sky when I find him and wrap my arms around his waist from behind. We remain quiet while he stares at the sky and I cry into his back.

"Bran knows what is best for us right now," Samuel finally says.

"What if something happens to you? I just got you back and I do not want to leave you," I sob. Samuel turns around to hold my face in his hands with his gentle eyes looking at me.

"Nothing will happen because you and our son will be safe and we will be together again soon. I will not let you stay to be in danger with whatever is going to happen here," Samuel says.

"Promise me you will come join us in Montana," I sniffle. Samuel kisses my forehead and encloses me in his arms like a blanket.

"I promise, my beautiful angel," Samuel whispers.

* * *

Leah glares at me while I let Alexander visit Bran when we first arrive and she is beginning to creep me out a bit. Charles is to arrive later with his wife, Anna, so we can meet and talk about a few things. Bran comes into the room with a suddenly sleepy Alexander and I let my sweet boy snuggle in my arms for a quick nap, even though he slept most of the car ride here. Leah looks at Alexander and then me with envy when she sees how much Alexander looks like his father and grandfather. Bran sits next to me to put his arm around my shoulder and pull me close with a big smile, making Leah even more jealous of me right now.

"You doing alright? Samuel told us that you are cancer free," Bran says.

"Yes, no new tumors and hopefully that means I will live forever to pester you Cornick boys," I tease with a smile.

"Does that mean you will be moving here?" Leah asks.

"No, we hope to be going back once everything is calm back home," I say calmly. The front door opens and I hear Charles call out to us. Alexander lifts his head a little when hears a familiar voice, but closes his eyes when he sees it is Charles. "Charles Cornick, you have not changed a bit."

"Neither have you, Marie," Charles says. He walks over to sit on the other side of me to give me a small hug while his wife stands at his side. "Anna, meet my sister-in-law, Marie. She is the woman that made my brother stir crazy when she left him."

"Hey, be nice to me, Charles," I say with a big smile. Alexander moves to snuggle against Bran. "That is my son, Alexander, he will be four this year."

"He is adorable and looks so much like Samuel," Anna says with a wide smile.

"Thank you," I say with a big smile. Leah leaves us after hearing enough about Alexander and I.

"She will be alright," Bran says.

"I know she envies me because I had a baby with Samuel. I am sure most of the wolves envy me," I say. "How about some tea?"

"Sure, I can help you," Anna says. Charles helps me up slowly and I walk with Anna to the kitchen. She looks at me from the corner of her eye every now and then, trying to figure out whether to ask me something.

"Go ahead and ask, Anna, I will not be offended," I say while filling the kettle.

"Oh, well, I was wondering how it was possible for you to have a healthy baby with Samuel being a werewolf. I mean, I am not sure if you are human or something else because you do not smell like a werewolf to me," Anna says.

"I am not technically human, I am a walker that shifts into a coyote sort of. I am healer with some magic in me so my ability to shift to a coyote is a little harder then it is for my sister. Because of my heritage, I am able to have children with Samuel," I explain.

"Oh," Anna says. I smile as I pour the water into the tea pot and soon change the subject to something else to ease her tension.


End file.
